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HOW BEAUTY WAS SAVED 



How Beauty Was Saved 

And Other Memories 
of the Sixties 



BY 

MRS. JAMES MADISON WASHINGTON 

{Mrs. A. A. Washington) 



New York and Washington 
THE NEALE PUBLISHING COMPA 

1907 



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UeHXRYorcbNGRESS 


Tw© ttoo»es Kecelvad 


. CwyrtfW Entry 
CUSS A XXc, *>. 
COPY i3. 



Copyright, 1907, by 
The Neale Publishing Compaky 




To 
SOUTHERN GIRLS 



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CONTENTS 



How Beauty Was Saved 


. 9 


The Telltale Gloves 


. 23 


The Magic Sign 


. 31 


A Labor of Love 


. 39 


The "Jaykawkers" . 


. 51 


Memories of Slave Days 


. 59 


A Narrow Escape 


. 67 



Green and golden memories 

Of the thrilling time 

When hearts and hands were true as steel 

In our sunny Southern clime. 

A. A. W. 



HOW BEAUTY WAS SAVED 



HOW BEAUTY WAS SAVED 

IN the summer of 1862, in the 
Bayou Manchac country near 
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, there 
was a modest little schoolhouse called 
the "Dove's Nest." To that school 
came two young girls to complete a 
course of study begun in Baton 
Rouge before the Federals captured 
that city. 

The country was visited quite often 
by bands of Confederates, "Jay- 
hawkers," and Federals; the slaves 
on the vast sugar plantations were in 
a demoralized condition from being 
so near the enemy's hues; yet the girls 
braved all these dangers, and rode on 
horseback (both on the same horse) 
11 



12 How Beauty Was Saved 

three miles through forest and field 
to attend school. They had no fear, 
for both could shoot a pistol, and al- 
ways carried a loaded one, and a smaU 
Spanish dirk for self -protection. All 
the valuable horses on the plantation 
having been given to the Confederate 
army, only two were left for family 
use, an old one, not of much service, 
and a young beautiful bay, the indi- 
vidual property of one of the girls. 

This horse the girls rode to school. 
Naturally he had a shambling, un- 
comfortable gait, but the girls deter- 
mined to teach him to pace, which 
they did by the use of a small steel 
spur. 

The days sped on, the year blushed 
into spring, bloomed into summer, 
and the girls grew accustomed to 
meeting bands of the " Blue and the 
Gray," sometimes riding along only 



How Beauty Was Saved 13 

fifty yards apart, yet totally ignorant 
of the fact. The girls narrowly 
missed being shot on one occasion, 
as some soldiers were firing down the 
road for practice, and the bullets 
whistled near their heads as they 
turned a curve in the lane. The boom- 
ing of cannon could be heard from 
the Mississippi River ; now and then a 
friend was killed in a roadside skir- 
mish; loved ones were captured and 
imprisoned; but the little school 
was undisturbed outwardly, though 
thrilled with anxiety and patriotism 
for the beloved Southland. 

When the days grew too long and 
hot for study, the earnest little teacher 
decided to close the term with a 
thorough, old-fashioned examination, 
and a modest exhibition. 

The neighborhood had been quiet 
for some weeks and no one feared a 



14 How Beauty Was Saved 

visit from the enemy. The " Dove's 
Nest " was prettily decorated, a 
piano moved in, and all made ready. 
The day of the exhibition dawned 
bright and fair, the woods were full 
of flowers, and nature seemed to 
laugh in the glad sunshine. The two 
girls arrived early, and one of them 
decided to ride to a friend's home a 
mile beyond, for a basket of fresh 
roses; she told her friend, the owner 
of Beauty, of her intention, then 
sprang into the saddle and rode away. 
When she reached the house she 
noticed a horse and buggy under an 
old oak near by. She knew it be- 
longed to an old bachelor who was 
slightly deaf (else he would have been 
in the Southern army), and that he 
had come to take the little teacher to 
the schoolhouse. When she dis- 
mounted she fastened her horse un- 



How Beauty Was Saved 15 

der the same tree, in full view of the 
road. The house was surrounded by 
spacious grounds, some distance from 
the main road, and a broad avenue 
led up to it from a large outer gate. 
The flowers were soon gathered, and 
after a chat with her friends, the girl 
started back, when someone cried, 
" Just look at the Yankees! " 

Sure enough, the house was sur- 
rounded and a company was sta- 
tioned at the big gate. The family 
stood together on the piazza, pale 
with fear, for they never knew what 
would happen in those troublous 
times. The officer in command told 
them that they were in need of fresh 
horses to make a raid, and had orders 
to " press " any into service that they 
could find. Turning to a soldier he 
said, ''Take that horse from the 
buggy, saddle him and see if he is 



16 How Beauty Was Saved 

fit for use." This caused the girl 
some uneasiness about her friend's 
horse, but she hoped the side-saddle 
would save him, as it had done when 
the Southern army were pressing 
horses. Anxiously she waited and 
listened. When the man returned, 
the Colonel said, " Try the other one." 
The girl was trembling now; the 
horse was not hers, it was the only 
one the family with whom she 
boarded could use to send to mill, or 
for a physician in case of illness ; and 
she felt that she could not give him 
up without an effort to save him. 

" Surely, sir, you are not going to 
take a schoolgirl's horse for the Fed- 
eral Government! " He smiled and 
asked her if she could swear that the 
horse was hers. She told him no, the 
horse belonged to a schoolgirl friend. 
He looked incredulous and said that 



How Beauty Was Saved 17 

he suspected it belonged to a rebel 
soldier; and, bowing an apology, 
again spoke to the man, " Tiy that 
horse." Like a flash a thought came 
to the girl. She would not plead or 
beg, — she was too proud for that, — 
but she said: 

" Colonel, let me try him for you." 
" Very well," he repUed, much 
amused. " Bring him up. Lieuten- 
ant." The girl had no time or chance 
to ask advice from anyone; but she 
wore the sharp steel spur. The Colo- 
nel politely offered to assist her in 
the saddle, but she sprang up without 
touching his hand. Dressed in white 
muslin, with braided hair looped back 
with pink rosebuds; without gloves, 
hat or riding skirt, she slowly started 
down the avenue in front of the 
house. She let the horse shamble 
along in the ugly way he liked until 



18 How Beauty Was Saved 

he reached the large gate where the 
company of soldiers were stationed. 
They looked surprised to see her rid- 
ing down alone on one of the horses 
they had stopped to take, but think- 
ing it must be all right, as the Colonel 
was in view, they lined up, saluted 
respectfully, and let her pass out. 
When she was beyond the last guard, 
she said, "Now, Beauty, fly I" and, 
as she used the spur freely, they did 
fly. For some distance they were in 
full view of the Colonel and her 
friends who stood waiting on the 
piazza for her return, then a curve 
in the road put her out of sight. 

In a few minutes she heard the 
clatter of hoofs behind her, but as the 
road was hard, dry and level, and she 
knew every foot of it, she hoped to 
outrun her pursuers. Glancing back 
she saw two soldiers splendidly 



Haw Beauty Was Saved 19 

mounted tearing after her. The 
" Dove's Nest" was in sight now, but 
the soldiers were gaining ground. 
She could hear the clanking of 
swords, the rattle of spurs, and the 
hoof beats. On she flew, faster and 
faster, for Beauty seemed to feel, 
with the rider, that an enemy was 
after them. The schoolyard gate was 
wide open, and she dashed through 
it and up to the porch where an 
eager, startled bevy of girls were as- 
sembled. She jumped off quickly 
and called to her friend, " Here is 
your horse. The Yankees are after 
him!" 

Just then the men rode up, very 
red, very angry, and somewhat 
scared, for they were in dense woods 
over a mile from their command. 
They ordered the girl to get back on 
that horse and return to the Colonel. 



20 How Beauty Was Saved 

She told them that she would not do 
anything of the kind; she was a 
Southern girl, not subject to Federal 
orders, and that they could not com- 
pel her to return. The owner of the 
horse said she would go with them, 
but they insisted on the girl who ran 
away going, too. This she refused to 
do, and she told them if they did not 
want to be captured by the Southern 
boys, they had better not linger. 

This had the desired efPect, and the 
girl who owned the horse, taking a 
small child behind her, rode back with 
the soldiers. When she arrived, the 
Colonel was surprised to see a differ- 
ent girl on the horse and to know that 
his men did not overtake the other 
one. The owner of Beauty was very 
pretty, very eloquent and spirited, 
and she could swear that the horse 
was hers, and prove it hy people pres- 



How Beauty Was Saved 21 

ent, so the Colonel allowed her to 
keep the horse. Her friend was 
greatly relieved, and all rejoiced that 
Beauty was not surrendered to the 
Federal Government to make a raid 
on our own dear soldier boys! This 
is a true story, for the writer was the 
runaway. 



THE TELLTALE GLOVES 



THE TELLTALE GLOVES 

THE Federals having left, and 
Beauty being safe, we pro- 
ceeded with our exercises that 
summer day at the " Dove's Nest." 
We passed a good examination, and 
just as we were singing our gayest 
songs a party of Confederates rode 
up. They tied their horses to the 
windows and doors, came in, and en- 
joyed the little concert. After the 
last melody had died away and the 
shades of evening were falling, we 
rode slowly homeward, each girl with 
a soldier boy beside her. 

One of the soldiers, in particular, 
was a reckless, daring young man, 
who had shot at the Federals from 

25 



26 How Beauty Was Saved 

ambush many times, had captured 
some of theu' horses, and was quite 
a terror to the raiders. His father's 
home was in that neighborhood, and 
the Federals were trying to capture 
him. 

Now, when the boys— for they 
were only boys — left us at the gate 
this particular one forgot his gloves 
— left them on a gate post. We 
found them, took them into the house, 
and threw them carelessly on the hall 
table. There were no milhnery stores, 
in fact no stores of any kind in the 
country, so the girls, for riding hats, 
wore boys' hats, with a plume jauntily 
pinned on the side. We took our 
hats off and laid them on the table 
bij the gloves. The boy's nickname, 
" Little Dare Devil," was on the in- 
side of the buckskin cuffs, but we 
had not noticed it. 



The Telltale Gloves 27 

That night we were aroused from 
sleep by the barking of dogs, the rat- 
thng of sabers and spurs. We knew, 
as soon as we were w^ell awake, that 
the Federals were in the house, and, 
slipping on our wrappers, w^e ran to 
mother's room, for we could hear 
them beating on our doors. We were 
dreadfully frightened, for there was 
an unfinished suit of Confederate 
gray in the house, and we knew that 
if it was found the house would be 
burned to ashes. Mother, who had 
the suit in her room, would not 
" strike a light " until the suit was 
concealed, and the pelican buttons 
slipped into her pocket. 

The Federals kept calling loudly 
for light, and we heard them burst 
into our room, saying, " Here they 
are, boys! The bed is right warm! 
Be quick!" We knew, then, that 



28 How Beauty Was Saved 

they were looking for Confederate 
soldiers. 

The house was searched from gar- 
ret to cellar, but, finding no one ex- 
cept members of the family, the 
intruders hurriedly departed. Next 
morning our hats and gloves were 
missing, having been taken from the 
hall table. A few days after this the 
Federals were out again, but this 
time in daylight. One of the officers 
came in the house and asked for a 
drink of water. While waiting for 
it to be drawn cool and fresh from the 
well ( for Southerners were courteous 
to an enemy when he stood upon their 
threshold), he seemed disposed to 
chat with the girls. 

"We came very near catching 
those fellows the other night," he 
said; "we got their hats and gloves, 
and saw their blankets on the floor. 



The Telltale Gloves 29 

Where in the world did they hide, 
young ladies? " 

We were very indignant; and told 
him that no Southern soldier would 
sleep in a private house so near the 
enemy's lines, and thus endanger the 
lives and property of his relatives 
and friends. We said that the hats 
were ours, and we would like them 
returned, and that the roll of blan- 
kets was used by a little colored girl 
who slept in the house, which fact 
they would have discovered if they 
had not been nearly scared to death. 
The officer looked astonished and 
seemed somewhat ashamed of the 
whole affair, but some of them did 
not believe us, for they rode away 
laughing about the name inside the 
gloves. 



THE MAGIC SIGN 



THE MAGIC SIGN 

I HAVE come to destroy your 
tannery and burn down your 
house." 
The officer spoke cahnly, and my 
father did not answer for a moment. 
After school closed I had returned 
to my home, which was about nine 
miles from the Federal lines. We 
had a small, rude tannery, for our 
family, including the servants, was 
quite large, and, as there was no place 
to get shoes in that part of Louisiana, 
my father employed a shoemaker and 
tanned his own leather. Our home 
was beautiful, with spacious grounds 
around it, and every nook and corner 
was dear to us. A clear winding 

33 



34 How Beauty Was Saved 

stream ran nearly around the planta- 
tion, and on the river was our " prim- 
itive " tannery. We had all been sup- 
plied with hard yellow shoes (the 
first tan-colored shoes we had ever 
seen, which we were much ashamed 
of), and there were some hides 
left. 

My father, hearing one day that 
the report had been carried to Baton 
Rouge that he was tanning leather 
for the Southern army, anticipated 
trouble, fearing the loss of his pre- 
cious leather. He decided the best 
thing he could do would be to hide it 
in some secret place. He was afraid 
to trust the servants, — for while 
some were faithful, others were not, 
— so he told the two youngest girls 
of his plan, and asked them to help 
him store away his valuable leather. 

When the servants were all asleep 



The Magic Sign 35 

in their cottages, we three, father and 
two young girls, dragged those things 
to the house, then upstairs, and into 
a long, dark closet. The house was 
two and a half stories high, so there 
was quite a space under the roof. We 
conquered our dread of dark, dust, 
spiders, and mice, and climbed up 
into the space just under the roof. 
Father handed up the hides to us 
and we hid them carefully and with 
many frights from imaginary ter- 
rors. After all was done we came 
down, closed the narrow little door, 
hung some dresses over it, and 
awaited future action on the part of 
the enemy. 

Sure enough, in a day or two the 
Federals came. Before we knew it 
the house was entirely surrounded by 
troops. The officer dismounted and 
knocked at the door. He asked to see 



36 How Beauty Was Saved 

my father, who met him at the hall 
door. 

" Sir," he said, " I am informed 
that you are tanning leather, and 
making boots for the Confederate 
army. I have come to destroy your 
tannery and burn down your house. 
Take your family out immediately." 

My father, my aged mother, and 
we, his daughters, who had enjoyed 
and loved the beautiful home so long, 
were speechless for a moment, and 
pale with fear. Then father said, 
slowly, " The report is false. We 
have a rude tannery, but only for 
home use," and begged him to spare 
the sacred old place. The Colonel 
said that he must search the house 
and see if any evidence could be 
found against us, and, taking several 
well-armed soldiers with him, he 
went through every room. 



The Magic Sign 37 

Of course we could not follow 
them, but we anxiously waited for 
their return. The Colonel must have 
been touched by our mute grief, but 
he only said, " I have orders to burn 
the house, and though I find no proof 
against you, I must obey orders." 
Then father asked him to step out 
on the veranda. They talked a few 
minutes, clasped hands, and the Col- 
onel, quickly wheeling around, or- 
dered the troops out of the house. In 
a few minutes every one was in line 
and rapidly marching away. In an- 
swer to our astonished inquiries, we 
were told that a Masonic sign, the 
secret of true brotherhood, had saved 
our dear home from desolating 
flames. 



A LABOR OF LOVE 



A LABOR OF LOVE 

ONE day a little girl was 
reading a story-book on the 
green lawn in front of a 
Southern home; two gentlemen were 
seated near under a wide-spreading 
magnolia tree talking about the polit- 
ical situation, the number of Presi- 
dential candidates, and the possible 
results of the election. Suddenly 
one of them said, " Yes, there is 
trouble ahead. Before that child is 
grown this country will be plunged 
into bloody war." The child was 
startled. The prophetic words were 
indelibly stamped on her mind. She 
could not sleep until long after mid- 
night, and when she slept she 
dreamed that she, like the " Maid of 

41 



42 How Beauty Was Saved 

Monterey," gave food and water to 
the thirsty soldiers, and dressed their 
bleeding wounds. 

The dream came true. While she 
was attending school in the capital 
city, talk of secession began, and then 
came preparations for war. I re- 
member the day the arsenal at Baton 
Rouge was seized by Louisiana, and 
all the citizens and the college girls 
marched down to the barracks on the 
river to see our soldiers drill. The 
women and girls went to work mak- 
ing clothes and little conveniences for 
the soldiers to take with them. In a 
few weeks we were thrilled with en- 
thusiasm when our first companies 
marched through the city with their 
knapsacks, blankets, and a half loaf 
of bread strapped on their backs. 
Poor boys, they lived to learn that 
*' a half loaf is better than none." 



A Labor of Love 43 

Some time after two companies * 
were camped near us on the Comite 
River, and real work began. How 
young and brave the soldiers were, 
and how proud every woman was who 
had a son, brother, or sweetheart in 
the army! For a time all was excite- 
ment, gaiety, and preparation; bands 
played, soldiers drilled, and citizens 
flocked to the camps to encourage and 
help in every way possible. One sad 
day orders came to move to the front. 
Knapsacks were packed, tents were 
folded, the last good-byes were 
spoken, tears fell softly but were 
dashed away, and our boys were gone 
— gone to meet their fate, whatever 
it might be! 

Soon after came the hard times. 
Luxuries were given up, privation 
was felt in every home, but no one 

*Bynum's and Buffington's. 



44 How Beauty Was Saved 

complained. People seemed proud 
to endure, and often met to exchange 
opinions and plans as to how to 
"make something out of nothing," 
as they expressed it. Old looms were 
brought out and repaired, and the 
spinning wheels were put to work. 
Flour, tea, coifee, and even salt 
ceased to be used on the family table. 
From the smoke-houses, where the 
salt meats had dripped for years, the 
salt-soaked earth was taken up, 
boiled in a vessel, the salt extracted, 
and dried in the sun. Sweet potatoes 
were sliced thin, cut in little pieces, 
browned in an oven, ground in a cof- 
fee mill, and a breakfast drink made 
from them. It looked like coffee, it 
was not injurious, so it was cheerfully 
taken in place of fragrant Mocha. 
Okra seed, parched corn meal, and 
parched peanuts were also used for 



A Labor of Love 45 

making a morning drink. " Confed- 
erate cake " was made by sifting corn 
meal through a sieve, and then 
thi'ough cloth. Rice was harvested, 
and husked in a wooden mortar, a 
work which required time and 
strength. All dress-goods became 
scarce — calico was $4 per yard and 
very hard to get. Jaunty dresses 
were made of coarse yellow domestic, 
piped with bright colors. No hats 
could be purchased, but stylish tur- 
bans were made of old straw covered 
with scraps of black silk or velvet, 
and were worn with pride, and called 
" Beauregard " hats. This recalls a 
song that was very popular in Louis- 
iana during the war. It is a wee bit 
touching to read it over now, for the 
Southern girls, daintily reared, sadly 
missed their fine linen, their soft 
silks and sheer muslins. The song 



46 How Beauty Was Saved 

was sung to the air of " The Bonny 
Blue Flag." 

" Oh, yes, I am a Southern girl, 
I glory in the name. 
And boast it with far greater pride 
Than glittering wealth or fame. 

" I envy not the Northern girl. 
Her robes of beauty rare; 
Though diamonds grace her snowy neck 
And pearls bedeck her hair. 

" My homespun dress is plain, I know. 
My hat's palmetto, too, 
But then it shows what Southern girls 
For Southern Rights will do." 

The war dragged on. New Orleans 
fell. Baton Rouge was in the hands 
of the enemy. Some of the Baton 
Rouge people refugeed to the coun- 
try, living in churches, schoolhouses 
and deserted log cahins; others were 
compelled to remain, as they had no 
shelter and no means of living out- 



A Labor of Love 47 

side of the city. Then followed the 
sieges on the Mississippi River, Port 
Hudson, and Vicksburg. Night af- 
ter night and all day long we could 
hear the heavy guns booming and the 
deadly shells hissing, and we had no 
means of knowing how our armies 
were faring. I remember the sad 
and anxious dread which came over 
me every time a gun was fired, and 
how I covered my head with pillows 
to shut out the fearful sound. 

One day in August the news came 
that Gen. John C. Breckinridge was 
on his way to attack Baton Rouge; 
that his army of less than three thou- 
sand w^ere tired and in need of food, 
and would be glad if the citizens 
would send out something to the road 
on which they were marching. Every 
family in the country began to pre- 
pare food; quantities of green 



48 How Beauty Was Saved 

corn, potatoes, vegetables, egg-bread, 
chickens, in fact, everything that 
could be had was cooked, packed in 
baskets, and carried out to meet the 
army. 

General Breckinridge pitched camp 
on the Comite River. On a foggy 
morning, August 5, the battle was 
fought. Historians have told all 
about the short, desperate battle. I 
remember the great disappointment 
that was expressed, and how people 
wondered why the Arkansas did not 
do her part on the river, where the 
enemy's three gunboats made such 
havoc. We did not know that she was 
lying, entirely disabled, only four 
miles away. After the battle the sick 
and wounded were taken to Green- 
well Springs, a pretty little summer 
resort near us, where a hospital was 
established, mattresses being laid on 



A Labor of Love 49 

the floors of the parlors and dining- 
room of the hotel. Southern women 
then proved their love and devotion 
to their country's defenders. Every- 
day buggies, drays, and carts went to 
the Springs, loaded with jellies, 
soups, and every delicate thing that 
we could make with our limited 
means. The surgeons had no lint to 
dress the wounds, so we went home, 
tore our finest linen sheets and ta- 
ble cloths into strips, and with sharp 
knives scraped them into fine, soft 
lint, for linen makes much better lint 
than plain cotton. 

During this time General Breckin- 
ridge, who was a very handsome man, 
visited our home and dined with us 
several times. On one occasion, just 
after a charming dinner with the 
General and several of his staff as 
guests, a heavy storm gathered. The 



50 How Beauty Was Saved 

rain fell in torrents all the afternoon. 
My parents urged the guests to spend 
the night as it was so dark and threat- 
ening, but the General said, " While 
it is a great temptation to enjoy for 
a few hours the comforts of a home, 
duty calls me to my camp and my 
boys." 

We learned to enjoy our " labor of 
love," and memory treasures Green- 
well Springs as a sacred spot where 
hands, heads, and hearts were used 
freely in the service of our beloved 
Southland. 



THE "JAYHAWKERS 



THE " JAYHAWKERS " * 

ON New Year's Day, 1862, 
one of the coldest days ever 
known in Louisiana, we 
were all seated around a bright wood 
fire talking as usual of the war, and 
of our absent boys. All were gone 
to the front — not a man was left, ex- 
cept my father, an aged clergyman. 
As we talked, we were startled by the 
furious barking of dogs, the tramp 
of horses, and a loud " Hello " at the 
front gate. When the door was 
opened we saw about twenty or twen- 
ty-five men muffled up to their eyes, 
muffled quite beyond recognition. 

*" Jay hawkers " were bands of deserters and 
outlaws that kept in hiding from both armies and 
preyed upon helpless citizens. 
53 



54 How Beauty Was Saved 

The men were riding miserable 
ponies, and they looked dreadful in 
their disguise, and seemed numb with 
cold. 

Father answered the call, and 
asked what was wanted. The man in 
front replied that they were " Gov- 
ernment officials"; that they had 
come to search the house, as they 
had heard it contained contraband 
articles and smuggled goods. We 
knew that there was not a shadow of 
truth in the statement, so my father 
asked to see the Government order. 
" You need not trouble about that, 
we have it all right!" replied the 
leader. Then they pushed their way 
into the hall, the parlor, the bedrooms, 
and all over the house, opening 
trunks, bureau drawers, desks, and 
closets. They took every yard of 
cloth they could find and everything 



The '' Jayhawkers" 55 

that looked new or valuable, piling 
them on the front piazza. Toilet ar- 
ticles, ladies' underwear, everything! 

My brother was a physician, at that 
time a surgeon in a Louisiana regi- 
ment, and we had quite a collection of 
jars and bottles of medicine that had 
been left over, among them a bottle 
of quinine valued at one hundred dol- 
lars, and prized above gold or silver. 
This medicine they found, and, sneer- 
ing and jeering, placed it with other 
things. When they had gone through 
every room, they went to the old-fash- 
ioned smoke-house in the yard, where 
the home-cured meat, the corn meal 
and other such things were kept, 
broke open the door and entered. 

Hidden away there was a small 
demijohn of whiskey, kept for medi- 
cinal purposes, and a box of sugar, 
kept also for the sick and suffering. 



56 How Beauty Was Saved 

When they found that, the men went 
wild with glee, and they ran, shout- 
ing, to the kitchen for cups and were 
soon drinking the fiery liquid. We 
stood looking on in agony, — the old 
father, the physician's wife, two 
young girls, and several small chil- 
dren, — all helpless, at the mercy of a 
band of drunken outlaws, two miles 
from any help ! 

After they had swallowed every 
drop, and felt warmed and cheered 
by the whiskey, they came out and 
began to talk about the sad duty of 
obeying " Government orders." We 
then told them that the report they 
had heard was false; that all the 
things they had collected on the 
piazza were in the house when the war 
broke out, and that we could prove it 
by the Home Guards, who would 
probably be along soon from their 



The '' Jayhawhers" 57 

camp near by. Of course, this was a 
ruse resorted to in our desperation, 
but it had a magical eiFect. The men 
ran to their horses, mounted in haste, 
and dashed off through the woods in 
a wild gallop. Oh ! what a relief, and 
how thankful we were! The goods 
were left on the piazza floor, quinine, 
clothing and all. They never came 
again, but the fear of their return 
never left us by night or day, until 
the war was over. 



MEMORIES OF SLAVE DAYS 



MEMORIES OF SLAVE 
DAYS 

ROWS and rows of white- 
washed cottages constituted 
the " quarters," with narrow 
streets between them, many of the Ht- 
tle homes adorned with bright-hued, 
old-fashioned flowers in the front 
yards, or with potato and melon 
patches. 

On cold winter evenings bright 
firelight shone from every door and 
window. Inside, the father sitting 
in the chimney corner, smoking his 
pipe while he deftly wove white-oak 
splints into cotton baskets; the 
mother, mending, or knitting, while 
the fat little darkies tumbled about on 
the floor, or danced to the music of 
Uncle Tom's fiddle. 

61 



62 How Beauty Was Saved 

The slaves were well fed, well 
clothed, well housed, and when ill 
they were well nursed, and attended 
by a good doctor. 

Then- houses were warmed by fires 
in broad fireplaces, fires which they 
kept burning all night. 

They had gay " Sunday-go-to- 
meetin' clothes," and they generally 
went to church, either to the " white 
folkses' church," where an upper gal- 
lery was provided for them, or to 
their own special service. 

If a planter allowed his slaves to 
be mistreated in any way, he and his 
family were ostracized from society, 
and made to feel the disapprobation 
of their neighbors. So general was 
this method of administering rebuke 
that it seemed to be an unwritten law 
throughout the South. 

Sometimes, as it often happens to- 



Memories of Slave Days 63 

day, an overseer of quick or ungov- 
ernable temper would be severe in 
punishing an offender; but he soon 
lost his place and a kinder man was 
employed in his stead. 

Somewhere in the '' quarters " a 
large nursery was situated, and there 
the babies and small children were 
cared for by the old women while 
their mothers worked in the cotton- 
fields. 

White children were taught to 
treat the grown-up servants with re- 
spect, and as they could not say 
"Mrs." or "Mr.,"'they called them 
"aunt" or "uncle." On Sunday 
afternoons the white children were 
often sent to read the Bible to the 
old colored people, and the children 
thought it quite an honor. If any of 
the house servants wanted to learn to 
read, they were taught, though after 



64 How Beauty Was Saved 

the war we heard this was against the 
law. We never knew it! 

Half of every Saturday was given 
to " the hands " to " clean up," tend 
their garden, or go fishing, as they 
chose. From ten daj^s' to two weeks' 
holiday was given at Christmas 
time, and a jolly good time they had 
— ^balls, parties, and weddings galore ! 
The white family and their guests 
would be cordially invited down, and 
they always enjoyed the festivities. 
Noblesse oblige was recognized every- 
where, and we felt bound to treat 
kindly the class dependent upon us. 
Young ladies parted with many a 
handsome gown or ribbon because 
their maids wanted them and boldly 
asked for them. We simply could 
not refuse, and they knew it. 

The faithfulness and devotion of 
the slaves has been written of by his- 



Memories of Slave Days 65 

torians, and they deserve all praise, 
for many of them were noble and 
self-sacrificing. After the war many 
of them remained at the old home- 
stead with their former owners, as 
long as they could be provided for, 
and when poverty compelled a sepa- 
ration, they left the homestead with 
sorrow. 

We of the South are glad and 
thankful that the negroes are free. 
We would not have them in bondage 
again if we could. '' Social equality " 
can never exist in the South, but the 
race can be, and many of them are, 
well educated, happy and prosperous : 
living in peace and harmony with 
their white neighbors, who are, and 
have been for many years paying 
taxes to educate them. 

It is the "floating" class of col- 
ored people that cause the trouble we 



66 How Beauty Was Saved 

read about in the daily papers. Those 
negroes who have been reared in the 
South, and know the old traditions, 
are law-abiding citizens with com- 
fortable homes, good schools, fine 
churches, and every chance to be 
prosperous and contented. ^ ^^ ^ 



A NARROW ESCAPE 



A NARROW ESCAPE 

ONE bright, beautiful day, we 
were all made happy by a 
visit from the oldest son of 
the family, a surgeon in the Confed- 
erate army. The river, winding al- 
most around the plantation, was " up 
to its banks " from recent heavy 
rains, all the bridges had been de- 
stroyed, and we felt comparatively 
safe from the Federals on the other 
side, though Baton Rouge was only 
nine miles away. The Doctor, who 
wore Confederate gray ornamented 
with Louisiana pelican buttons, rode 
a fine large horse, which he left in the 
stables some distance from the house. 
Sitting around the broad fireplace 

69 



70 How Beauty Was Saved 

in mother's room, talking of the home 
people and the war, we were enjoying 
the unexpected visit, when one of the 
girls chanced to look out through the 
south door. She turned very pale, 
and exclaimed, " Look at the sol- 
diers! " All around the kitchen, talk- 
ing to the servants, and all over the 
grounds were Federal soldiers on 
horseback. 

What was to be done? If our 
brother was captured it meant impris- 
onment to the end of the war, and 
perhaps death. When he realized the 
situation, for he had been near the 
door and knew they had come for 
him and were questioning the serv- 
ants, he dropped on his knees, crept 
into a small room adjoining, where 
two of us pulled off his gray coat and 
replaced it by an old one from the 
wardrobe, gave him a book, and 



A Narrow Escape 71 

someone whispered, " Go into the 
guest-chamber and wait. Take these 
old trousers with you." He sUpped 
into the quiet room, and taking a seat 
by the window, and opening the book, 
assumed the role of an invalid. Then 
we hastily concealed the Confederate 
uniform, but where we put it I can 
never remember. It was securely 
hidden. 

By that time the Federal officers 
and some of the men were in the 
house looking around with curiosity, 
but they offered no explanation about 
their call. There were five or six 
bright, pretty girls in the house, and, 
contrary to our usual custom, we 
chatted with the officers and used all 
our attractive powers to keep them in 
front of the house and on the broad 
veranda. Our attentions seemed to 
please them, and the private soldiers 



72 How Beauty Was Saved 

were quietly ordered out and were not 
allowed to search for and appropriate 
valuables as they usually did. 

In a little while the Federals, the 
girls, and the family were all en- 
gaged in pleasant conversation on 
the piazza overlooking the beautiful 
flower-yard and the lovely, peaceful 
scene. Someone quietly stole back 
to the prisoner's room, told him the 
chance to escape had come, gave him 
an old hat, and helped him get out of 
the window near the garden, a garden 
bordered by a dense hedge. Then the 
messenger returned to the group on 
the porch, and we chatted gaily, while 
our hearts were beating with excite- 
ment and anxiety for the fugitive. 

After some time the soldiers began 
to mount their horses, the servant 
having told us in the mean time that 
the Yankees had the Doctor's horse. 



A Narrow Escape 73 

We concluded that the fugitive 
would need his horse to get back to 
Port Hudson, if he had escaped, and 
we felt encouraged to believe he had, 
and we determined we would try to 
save the horse also. Two of us re- 
quested the Colonel to step into the 
parlor, as we wished to speak to him. 
He looked a little suspicious and 
seemed ill at ease when he had en- 
tered the room and the door was 
closed. The large, beautiful room 
with its heavy furniture, its bright 
brass andirons, its elegant pictures 
and wealth of flowers seemed harm- 
less enough, and one of the girls was 
beautiful and bewitching, so he 
braved the danger (if there were dan- 
ger!) and asked what he could do 
for us. We told him a fine horse had 
been taken out of our stables by his 
men; that we needed the animal as 



74 How Beauty Was Saved 

we were fond of horseback riding, 
and only the old carriage horses were 
left to us. He said he was sorry to 
refuse our polite request, but his men 
had seen the army saddle and bridle; 
that it looked like a " U. S." horse, 
— in fact, was branded " U. S.," — 
and under the circumstances he 
would be obliged to take him. 

All this time our soldier-brother 
was hurrying across fields and woods, 
hills and valleys to the banks of 
the river, which meant safety on 
the other side. The officer, as I 
remember across the long years now 
passed, enjoyed the novelty of his 
position and looked with interest and 
a touch of sympathy at the Southern 
home and the piquant Southern girls. 
When he returned to the veranda the 
soldiers mounted their horses, gave 
us a respectful salute, and galloped 



A Narrow Escape 75 

down the broad avenue. When they 
reached the gate a large flock of 
geese, about a hundred, furiously at- 
tacked the enemy; their horses reared 
and plunged, and the " rank and 
file " were so angry because they had 
not been allowed any spoils, that they 
unsheathed their swords and, leaning 
over as far as they could, cut off the 
heads of some of our bravest ganders 
— the officers sitting erect, and trying 
to look grave. It was an amusing 
sight. " They routed them, they 
scouted them, nor lost a single man! " 
When all had gone we sent a boy 
in haste to the ford of the river to 
find out about our soldier. He had 
crossed the swollen stream in a rude 
dug-out with board paddles, and was 
safe, safe on the other side. 



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